War on Talent

Photo: Antim

Unilever has been recruiting talent already for fifty years for their
internal training programmes. This corporate’s approach to attracting
trainees has changed considerably over time. The classic recruiter
interviews are making way for artificial intelligence and video interviews.
For trainees, the CV no longer plays a role. “We make use of
computer games to test the candidates for their insight, creativity
and intelligence. Next, they are asked to make a video in which they
answer a few questions. The software processes this data and looks,
for example, at how the candidate comes across. Does he show confidence?
Is he uncertain?” Based on the data collected, certain candidates
are invited for an assessment day at our offices. At that moment,
the assessors have not yet seen anything of the candidates.
No CVs either. The only thing that matters is if the candidate has
completed a study programme. Psychology, chemistry, business
studies… that’s irrelevant.